Cases registered against protesting journalists in Karachi
KARACHI, Nov 22: The Karachi Union of Journalists on Thursday strongly condemned registration of FIRs against journalists who were arrested on Nov 20 outside the Karachi Press Club while protesting against emergency and draconian laws curbing media freedom.
In a statement issued here the KUJ rejected allegations leveled in the two FIRs (282/07 and 283/07) registered in the Frere Police Station and consider them contrary to the assurances given by the Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan when a KUJ-KPC delegation met him on Wednesday and had presented him a memorandum condemning the uncalled for police action against media people.
KUJ President Shamim-ur-Rahman said the measures were deplorable and declared that KUJ would contest these allegations, if the FIRs were not quashed forthwith and measures are taken against those who engineered these malicious FIRs. He declared that journalists would continue their protest until their grievances were addressed and they were not afraid of such repressive measures. He said that if any harm came to the journalists the government will be held accountable for the consequences.
The journalists were neither armed nor unruly. They only wanted to march on the Governor’s House to present a memorandum of the demands for lifting of emergency and draconian laws curbing media.
The KUJ strongly deplored registration of FIR 282/07 under Sections 147/148/149/353/186/324,337A ( I ) 427 QD of the PPC against 100 to 150 innocent journalists who have been described as “soorat shanas” . Not only these sections have been incorporated in the FIRs are bogus but they have been inserted with malafide and criminal intent to harass the media. The KUJ maintains that the police have wrongly stated in the FIRS that journalists Aajiz Jamali and Zubair Rehman were not injured by the baton charge. The KUJ also rejected the allegations against five journalists in FIR 283/07 against Moosa Kaleem, Najeeb Ahmad, A. H. Khanzada, Ghulam Mustafa and M. Asghar Umar for violating Section 144 under Section 188 PPC.
While rejecting these charges the KUJ made it clear to the authorities concerned that such repressive and malafide measures would not deter journalists in their ongoing struggle for freedom of the Press.. The KUJ also reiterated its demand for lifting of emergency and curbs on media and restoration of banned TV channels.
Source: KUJ
Date:11/23/2007
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